St Francis
Rotary
Rotary is an organisation of business and professional persons united worldwide who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world.
The Rotary Club of St. Francis was inducted as a Satellite Club of Rotary Club of Jeffreys Bay (and later Uitenhage South) on the 21 July 2011 and chartered as the Rotary Club of St Francis on 9th November 2019. This vibrant and busy club has attracted 23 members since its induction – representing both the St Francis Bay and Cape St Francis communities. St Francis is situated in the Kouga region of the Eastern Cape.
About Rotary
The Rotary Movement was born on the evening of 23 February 1905, when Paul Harris, then a young lawyer who felt a bit lost and lonely in the bustling city of Chicago, USA, invited three friends to discuss an idea to start a men’s club in order to enlarge their circle of friends and business acquaintances.
While Paul Harris was interested in fellowship he also hoped the club would undertake broad civic functions of value to the entire community. In 1907 the club launched its first community service project- the establishment of restroom facilities near City Hall Chicago. Today 100 years later the organisation has grown phenomenally.
What is Rotary?
Rotary is a world fellowship of ordinary people bonded together in Rotary clubs for the purpose of encouraging fellowship amongst members to foster the ideal of service above self.
The Rotary thoughtfulness of others is regarded as the basis of service and helpfulness of others as its expression.
The religious and political beliefs of Rotarians are regarded as their own concern. Rotarians are expected to be faithful to their religion and loyal in their citizenship.
Rotary does not endeavour to complete or carry out the civic activities, which belong to other organisations. However it often helps to develop or spark off suitable agencies, which will make the community a better place in which to live, when no such agencies exist.
Rotary’s membership is unique. It tries to make the membership of a Rotary club a true cross section of the community’s interests and activities.
Rotary also differs from other organisations in that the establishment of a Rotary club links its community to a world encircling chain of cities and towns where Rotary Clubs following the same ideas have been organised.
Rotary stands for the application of high standards in business and professional life; for understanding, goodwill and peace among the people of the world.
Object of Rotary
The object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster:
- The development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service
- High ethical standards in business and professions; the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations; and the dignifying of each Rotarian’s occupation as an opportunity to serve society.
- The application of the idea of service in each Rotarian’s personal, business and community life;
- The advancement of international understanding, good will and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.
COMMUNITY UPLIFTMENT PROJECTS
Background :
St Francis Bay is a village on the South-East Coast of South Africa, situated between Port Elizabeth in the east and Plettenberg Bay in the west and is a popular holiday and retirement destination.
The population consists of a small affluent community, with the majority of the formal housing being holiday homes of people residing in the big cities. The balance of the population is a disadvantaged community residing for most part in shacks in an informal settlement adjacent to the village, and for the slightly more fortunate in the “formal” settlement, consisting of basic council housing or RDP houses. This part of St. Francis Bay is called Sea Vista.
The main industries, which the disadvantaged community rely on, are the fishing industry, and to a lesser extent the tourism industry, both of which are seasonal. The unemployment rate amongst this community is in excess of 50%.
Alcohol and drug addiction is rife, with spousal and child abuse a common occurrence.
The St. Francis Rotarians are a growing, passionate group, who feel that as representatives of a bona fide international service organization, they can make a real difference in this disadvantaged community.
Vocational Areas:
Within Sea Vista there are several institutions making a difference by providing assistance in the following vocational areas:
- Education
- Health and Medical Assistance
- Skills Training and Job Creation
- Mentorship for Teenagers
- Environment and Conservation
All the institutions have attempted to obtain funding from various sources, with little or no success. Only two institutions receive limited, but insufficient financial support from Government. All the other institutions are reliant on support from donors or the private sector.
The Rotary Club of St. Francis has supported these institutions over the years and is well placed to provide a conduit for the management of funds raised and the identified institution. Funds deposited into the club’s bank account are ring-fenced for the relevant project as specified by the donor, with our Rotary club being responsible for the allocation, monitoring, usage of funds, providing feedback and reporting to ensure funds are applied and accounted for as intended. The listed recipients / institutions below have all been supported by the Rotary Club of St. Francis and as such have been verified as credible organisations that fulfil their purpose as stated.
- Disney Land Creche
- FOSTER (Friends of St Francis Nature Areas)
- Kromme Enviro Trust
- National Sea Rescue Institute
- Sea Vista Primary School
- Sibanye Ladies Group
- St Francis Clinic in Sea Vista
- St Francis Hospice
- Talhado Children’s Haven Montessori Pre-Primary
We invite you to peruse some of the various projects and follow us on Facebook. Please revert back to us with any queries that you may have and consider making a contribution to or adopting a project.
CONCLUSION
We appeal to potential donors or BBBEE contributors to consider making a contribution to or adopting one of our projects.
If you require any further information please contact our Club Secretary (contact@rotarystfrancisbay.org) or visit our website www.rotarystfrancisbay.org.
Bank details
Standard Bank
Rotary Satellite Club St Francis Bay
Account number 186525753
Branch – Humansdorp 050015
Swift Code SBZAZAJJ
Bank Address : 35 Main Rd, Humansdorp 6300
All contributions no matter how small will help to sustain these projects and will be most gratefully received.
More on Our Projects
St Francis Clinic in Sea Vista
This clinic is the first port of call for anyone in the broader community who does not have access to private health care. For many folks in the disadvantaged community, Sister Bertha Strydom and her staff are a lifeline providing access to basic healthcare which they...
Disney Land Creche
Disney Creche provides crèche facilities for nursery school children from Sea Vista’s under-privileged community. The Government’s Social Development department will only provide funding of R15.00 per child per month for up to a maximum of 20 children. This subsidy is...
Talhado Children’s Haven Montessori Pre-Primary School
This school provides Montessori pre-schooling for children aged from 3 to 6 years old. This is one of very few Montessori schools operating in an underprivileged community on the African continent. All teachers have been fully trained in this teaching format and are...
Sea Vista Primary School
The initiative to raise money for the Sea Vista Primary School Educational Fund was started in 2018 by the St Francis community to relieve the educational crisis at the primary school, which serves the under-privileged community in Sea Vista. The communities of St...
In normal times, the Rotary Club of St Francis meets on the second and fourth Monday of each month at 17h30 at the St Francis Links Golf Club, St Francis Bay 6312.
However COVID-19 has meant that meeting dates and times depend entirely on COVID restrictions at the time and availability of venues. Please call our Secretary for details of when and where our next meeting will take place.
contact@rotarystfrancisbay.org
In normal times, the Rotary Club of St Francis meets on the second and fourth Monday of each month at 17h30 at the St Francis Links Golf Club, St Francis Bay 6312.
contact@rotarystfrancisbay.org
Club President 2021 – 2022
George Stegmann Tel : 082 413 8744
Club Secretary 2021 – 2022
Lyn Aitken Tel : 082 777 5624
Treasurer – 2019 – 2021
Ivan Beaumont Tel : 082 411 0968